Sounds Good

Seabourne says and new stuff to try
I don’t know how reader Seabourne Stokes got his scoop, but he predicts a cranberry shortfall and suggests stocking up for the holidays. Cranberries are good for women’s health especially, and it’s on the condiment bar at Luby’s, he says.

New from Duncan Hines
A pouch of real apples comes in the new 100 percent whole grain Apple Cinnamon box mix. A crunchy oatmeal granola topping seals the deal. Triple Chocolate Chunk Premium Muffin Mix also gets the whole grain treatment and the real chocolate makes it a winner. My daughter made the confetti cupcakes into a one whole cake for her own birthday party and we topped it with another new product, Cool Whip Whipped Dip, in chocolate or strawberry. I even tried that dip frozen and it’s smooth like ice cream.

Stawberry puffs
Frutzi’O freeze dried fruit snacks aren’t for astronauts. They’re for folks who like yummy snacks for 100 calories a bag. That having been said, crisps of crunchy puffs of, say strawberry, like the nibbles you get in breakfast cereal, aren’t for everyone, but my samplers found them like the bag touts: “natural, healthy & irresistible.” Take what you will from that. Although beautifully red and crisp, we thought they’d be pretty nice floating in a clear drink.

Libations
Tips abound for people who want to drink water at a party while encouraging pushy “have another drink” types to leave them alone. Me is a “personality-paired” sparkling water that would make everyone at the party want a slim, colorful can. I’m most keen on Uninhibited, a pink grapefruit blend for someone who is “not constrained by societal norms or peer pressure. They are free spirited, open-minded, and eager to experience the unknown. The uninhibited person carves their own path in life.” That’s me, right?
I can also be Curious, in blueberry lime or Vivacious in tangerine pineapple. Unavailable, in dragon fruit blackberry, is someone else. Descriptions on cans are kind of like fortune cookies and a party game unto itself.
Purista, all-natural premium cocktail mixers, come in attractive bottles, and that alone hooks me. Organic sugar cane and natural juices are the selling points in mojito, margarita and blackberry mixes, but makers also accentuate the ease with which you can blend. Now you don’t take time away from your guests with squeezing, measuring and muddling. I like muddling. But, I also liked the mojito blend better than any other I have ever tried. Try Purista in punch mixes or, I’m thinking, over ice cream.
Fever is a drink you may want to catch. I tried the “stimulation beverage” in Kiwi + Strawberry and liked the herbal infusion straight up, though you can mix this with other beverages. The big news is that GNC is adding this and the Mango + Banana varieties to shelves. It’s sold as a “sexy” aphrodisiac. People kept asking if it’s an energy drink. No, the company reports. It is a “stimulation beverage that produces feelings of pleasure and euphoria, as well as being rich in antioxidants, a body detoxifier, libido enhancer, etc.
Zen Green Tea Liqueur makes not, as they say, your mother’s iced tea. I could somehow see my grandmother enjoying it very much. It’s got the tall, green cool-bottle points and a partnering with Skyy infusions for recipes such as these:
ZEN, White & Blue
11/2 parts ZEN Green Tea Liqueur
3 parts prepared Silver Needle White Tea
11/2 parts Sky Infusions Raspberry
3 parts fresh blueberries, muddled or pureéd
Combine and serve on the rocks. Garnish with fresh mint.
ddoiron@panews.com